Open Hearth Inn

First of all, I want to say that the 5 stars are for meeting our expectations, not for being a five-​star hotel! This is a lovely but dated little collection of cottages and rooms, with wonderful owners. We stayed in one of two apartment options, which was perfect for us as a family of three to be able to have breakfast in the morning, and an easy pasta dinner made in a fully equipped kitchen. We also spent a lovely evening in a meticulously maintained hot tub! Our apartment was spotless, though dated and somewhat worn, and had a bedroom with a queen bed as well as a trundle bed and futon in the living area. We absolutely adored it as a cozy spot perfectly situated to get to Mount Desert Island, away from the cheesy insanity of Bar Harbor. One caveat: the wifi does not work in Apartment B due to concrete walls. Highly recommended as an affordable and comfortable option for Acadia!

My wife and parents were here for the July 4^th weekend. July 4^th is probably among the busiest times of the year at Bar Harbor and so we were relieved to find any accommodation without paying an arm and a leg. That said, the overall amount with taxes came to ~ $ 150 per night, which in hindsight, was not cheap even by Acadia /​Bar Harbor standards.
As far as our room was concerned, it was quaint and maybe even cute at some level, but what really comes to my mind was the underinvestment of the owners in the property. To start off with, the bathroom did not have a bolt /​latch to secure the door from inside. Now remember that I was staying here with my wife and my parents for 2 days so the absence of a latch could have potentially made for some very embarrassing moments. We got around it by implementing a code — if the door key which said «Do not disturb» was hung on the bathroom door, no one was to walk into the bathroom. In hindsight, it just surprises me to think that a place can get by without installing a latch on the bathroom door.
The second thing which struck me the moment I walked into the room was the age of the TV. I am not exaggerating when I say that I have not seen an older TV in the last 10 or so years. Even our home TV, which we picked up for FREE, is newer than the one we found at OHI. Now it’s a legit question as to why we would be interested in the TV during a trip to Bar Harbor. And the answer has to do with World Cup soccer and the quarter finals of the tournament which were going on at that point. We did manage to see some of the games but the age of the TV never ceased to surprise me.
And yet one more unmistakable proof of the underinvestment of the owners was the poor wi-​fi connection. As much as I hate paying $ 9.95 for internet access at a Hilton or Sheraton, I would rather have a paid reliable internet connection than the terrible «free» internet connection at OHI. Our smart phones (Samsung Galaxys) were completely unable to pick up the wifi, and my Lenovo laptop which is otherwise great, also had a VERY hard time picking up the wifi so much so that any research we wanted to do in terms of trip planning was greatly hampered by the lack of reliable internet access.
Another disadvantage of the location (and this is not unique to OHI) is that the «city» gets dead late in the evening. Which meant that once we were back from viewing the 4^th of July fireworks at Bar Harbor at around 10 p.m., we did not have any place to eat at within say a 3 mile radius. Certainly something to be aware of for any potential renters at this location.
Overall, I would say that the satisfaction from our July 4^th weekend outing was a few notches lower because of having stayed at OHI. In fact if it came down to it and I was presented with a situation in which I could have a vacation in Acadia but stay at the OHI and another option which did not involve any vacation period, I would gladly pick the latter because of the poor amenities that OHI presented us with.
A final note — this review is for the motel and not for the cottages. Having seen the general indifference of the owners, the fact that toiletries were not replaced regularly, and the fact that the bath towels were among the most abrasive I have ever encountered, it is hard for me to believe that the cottages were much better. But they could well be and so this review should mostly be seen as a review for the motel rooms (C was the one in which we stayed).

I was staying all the way in Bangor and going to Acadia National Park (about an hour drive). On my way to Acadia, I passed the adorable Open Hearth cabins, which were only a few miles from Acadia. (What really attracted me was something the owner had written on the marquee, and that I agreed with!) The places were SO cute and well-​kept, I quickly called and got the #1 cabin for 2 nights. Both the Innkeepers were very nice. At first I spoke to her, then during my stay I spoke with him — very nice people.
My cabin was quite cozy. It is only 1 room, small but nice. It had 2 double beds, a dresser, and a couple little tables. The place is all wood — kind of rustic — and the floor is carpeted. The sheets and towels were clean, and the whole place was spotless. The bed and pillows were very comfortable. It was cold when I was there (October 12 & 13, 2013), and there is a heater that you turn on at the wall. At first, it didn’t seem efficient, but then it heated the room nicely. In fact, we had to turn the heat off during the night as it got a tad warm in there. There was good, free wi-​fi and plenty of parking.
The bathroom is small, but functional. The shower is very small, but it had plenty of hot water and that’s all that mattered.
In the morning, there is a minimal continental breakfast. There were real hard boiled eggs (not those packaged ones — I knew they were real because they had the shell still on them — I liked that). There were a few muffins, some oatmeal, and hot coffee and juice. There are 3 small tables in the main house to sit at and have your breakfast. I had a good cup of coffee, but opted to go into Bar Harbor for breakfast; there are plenty of good breakfast places there.
I would definitely stay here again. The price was insanely reasonable! For my 2 nights the total was $ 183.00 (less than $ 100 a night). I had priced a Best Western a couple miles up the road and the rate there was $ 150 PER night. I was very happy with the rate of this cute little cabin.
Oh, most important. The location is awesome. It’s just a quick drive up the road to the entrance to Acadia National Park (about 7 or 8 miles). And Bar Harbor is just a tad further. Exceptional location if you are going to the National Park.

Cottages are cozy and clean. The owners are very friendly and helpful, they gave me several helpful ideas on what to do in the area and also personally walked me to my cottage and showed me around. Breakfast in the morning was good for continental– boiled eggs, muffins, cereal, yogurt and a good assortment of fruits. My favorite thing about the place though was the hot tub. After a long day hiking it was the best thing ever– very relaxing environment and very clean! My only complaint is that the location is right across from the airport so you can hear the planes every once in awhile, but not enough to disturb a good night’s rest.